Milarepa
Jetsun Milarepa
1052-1135 • Tibetan
Buddhism
Tibetan yogi and poet, one of the most revered saints of the Kagyu lineage. After a youth of dark deeds, he undertook ferocious solitary practice in mountain caves and attained enlightenment in a single lifetime. The Hundred Thousand Songs of Milarepa preserve his spontaneous teachings in verse.
Key Works
- Hundred Thousand Songs of Milarepa
- Life of Milarepa
108
quotes in library
Quotes by Milarepa
108 quotes“This is the bodhisattva's vow.”
bodhisattvaSongs of Milarepa
“Treasures of dharma make it rise.”
dharmaSongs of Milarepa
“In the absence of contemplation, hearing many teachings is like dipping a tongue into the ocean — it does not quench the thirst.”
practiceHundred Thousand Songs
“Hasten slowly and you will soon arrive.”
patienceSongs of Milarepa
“My religion is not deceiving myself.”
integritySongs of Milarepa
“Do not look for any other Buddha but your own mind.”
mindSongs of Milarepa
“Renunciation is not throwing away material things — it is throwing away clinging to them.”
renunciationSongs of Milarepa
“All worldly pursuits have but one unavoidable end, which is sorrow.”
impermanenceSongs of Milarepa
“Acquisitions end in dispersion.”
impermanenceSongs of Milarepa
“Buildings end in destruction.”
impermanenceSongs of Milarepa
“Meetings end in separation.”
impermanenceSongs of Milarepa
“Births end in death.”
impermanenceSongs of Milarepa
“Knowing this, one must from the very first renounce acquisition and heaping up.”
renunciationSongs of Milarepa
“Better than reading scriptures is one moment of true meditation.”
meditationSongs of Milarepa
“My fingertips are calloused from the rope I climb to my cave; my mind is purified by the rope of meditation.”
practiceSongs of Milarepa
“This human body is a precious vessel; do not waste it on trivial pursuits.”
preciousnessSongs of Milarepa
“In the impermanence of life, what is there to grasp?”
non-clingingSongs of Milarepa
“In the emptiness of self, who is there to defend?”
non-selfSongs of Milarepa
“Then the great freedom dawns.”
freedomSongs of Milarepa
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